Bakcell launches 3G services (Azerbaijan)
Azerbaijan’s second largest mobile operator in terms of subscribers, Bakcell, has reportedly launched its 3G services in 62 cities under the brand ‘sur@’. The operator which received the 3G licence from the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) earlier this month reportedly plans to extend its 3G services to the country’s rural areas during the next year.
As per sources, the mobile broadband service provides users access to a maximum download speed of up to 14.4 Mbps across all coverage cities, with the speed reaching up to 28 Mbps in the capital, Baku. Further, reports reveal that Bakcell plans to launch Dual Carrier HSPA+ services over the network, which would raise the download speeds to 42Mbps.
Bakcell is the third operator in the country to offer its users 3G services. Mobile network operator Azerfon was the first to launch 3G in December 2009, followed by Azercell, subsidiary of TeliaSonera, which launched its 3G services last week.
Azercell and Bakcell receive 3G licenses (Azerbaijan)
Azercell and Bakcell, the two largest mobile operators in terms of subscribers in Azerbaijan, have been awarded 3G licences by the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT). As per reports, both the operators have rolled out the required infrastructure are may introduce the 3G services in the coming months. Prior to this, Azerfon was the only telecom operator in the country licensed to provide 3G services. The company received the license in December 2009 for $ 13,900 and launched its 3G network across Baku and other man cities in the same month. As per sources, the ministry has also asked all three mobile operators to submit proposals for providing Long Term Evolution (LTE) mobile broadband services.
As per reports, communications and IT minister Ali Abbasov had said a couple of months back that the procedure for issuing licenses to these operators was in its last phase and only few minor technical issues were remaining for the operators to resolve to fulfill all the licensing requirements.
Azerbaijan calls for lowered mobile tariffs
Azerbaijan has taken a step further in lowering the mobile tariffs calling for greater savings for the consumers. According to Eliyar Temirov, officer of Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technologies, the tariffs levied by operators, on an average, are higher that the tariffs in other nations. To offset the balance in the market and to prevent unfair competition, asymmetrical regulation is exercised in the international practice by to supporting a new entrant against the established incumbent service providers. Moreover, the mobile call prices may be reduced by cutting the fees that operators levy for switching callers between each other’s networks,†he added.
The ministry has talked about this to Azercell and Bakcell, convincing them to cut down the tariffs. The Tariff Council has given a green signal to the lowering of so-called termination rates that mobile operators can charge each other to connect calls between their networks within the antimonopoly policy.
Wireless Mobile Telecom Wireless News
